The Southold Town Zoning Board of Appeals ruled Thursday that a controversial plan to build a storage barn on a property in Cutchogue where the development rights have been sold would not be an allowable use. READ

Southold Town’s purchase of development rights (PDR) program was created to encourage agriculture, save farmland from residential development, provide capital to farmers and preserve the rural character of the North Fork. So far, it’s been a success. But now, the intent to help farmers appears to have become subject to interpretation.